


New Beginnings

by kickcows



Category: Bleach
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-13
Updated: 2016-12-23
Packaged: 2018-08-22 07:22:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8277562
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kickcows/pseuds/kickcows
Summary: The battles with the Quincy have finally ended, and now Ichigo must deal with the aftermath. But first, he needs to find out how his lover fared down below.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I was not too thrilled with the ending of the manga, so I decided I wanted to explore what I had ultimately wanted for these two. I hope you will enjoy reading this! :) 
> 
> Prompt - "It wasn't meant to be like this."

***

* * *

He watches Yhwach die a slow death, his hands and body itching to just be back down in Soul Society. It’s finally over. The man that has caused so much death and destruction, with his Sternritter - who he had thought Ishida had been a part of, but had only been playing the part to allow him to get full advantage of the situation - are all finally dead. He puts Zangetsu on his back, looking around at the destructed palace that once belonged to the Soul King.

“An excellent job,” Aizen comments from nearby, pain evident in his voice. “I am glad that we were able to make this possible.”

Ishida scoffs from the other side of the temple. “Do not go praising yourself too much.”

“Inoue!” Ichigo shouts, looking around frantically for his friend. “Inoue, where are you?!”

“Here, Kurosaki-kun!” She steps from behind a pillar, dress torn to bits, but still covering the right places. “Is it over??”

“Yes.” He nods, dropping to his knees. “Heal Aizen with your faeries, please.”

“But-”

Looking over at her, he gives a firm nod of his head. “He’s part of the reason we were able to do what we did. Soul Society can take care of him, but we owe him this.”

“Okay.” Orihime moves over to where Aizen is laying, and speaks quietly, “Santen kesshun.”  He doesn’t take his eyes off of where the two are, wanting to make sure that Aizen won’t pull any stupid tricks. After what they’ve all been through, he doubts it will be an issue.

Ishida drops to his knees next to him. “Thank you for trusting me,” Ishida sighs. “It’s been difficult time.”

“It’s over now.” He pats his friend’s shoulder, giving him a smile. “We did good.”

“I wonder what’s going on down below,” Ishida lowers his head. “The Sternritter had orders that were absolute.”

Ichigo stands up, and offers his hand to his friend. “Why don’t we go down and find out?” He looks over, and sees both Orihime and Aizen standing up.

True to his word, Sado had taken care of the statues, allowing the four of them to head back out of the palace. He sees Sado with Ganju, the two of them alive, but looking worse for wear. He expects everyone to look like that right now. He certainly can’t wait to get back down on solid ground, as being up this high isn’t really sitting right with him. He looks around, and doesn’t see any way to get back without having to jump, and there’s no way he’s going to do that.

“Yo, Aizen! How the hell do we get down from here?”

“Follow me.” Aizen opens a garganta, the sound making Ichigo’s stomach twist, not at all happy to be doing this, but what choice does he have?

His friends go through first, Sado supporting Ishida, Orihime helping Ganju get through the portal. Turning around, he sees the Soul King’s palace all but destroyed. There are a few spires still standing, but it’s going to take time to rebuild. If it’s this bad up here, he can’t even imagine what it looks like down below. Suddenly, he doesn’t feel so anxious to get down from up here, afraid of the reality that’s waiting down below. A hand touches his shoulder. His head shoots up, and he sees Aizen standing next to him, a blank look on his face. “Come along, Kurosaki.” He nods, and follows the man through the garganta, the instant coldness surrounding him.

It doesn’t take them very long to get to Seireitei, but he wouldn’t have known it was that had he not been down here before. Everything is in shambles - buildings destroyed, dead bodies scattered over the landscape. He looks around, and sees a few of the Gotei 13 standing around, the 4th Division squad setting up triage areas anywhere that they can. All around them, shinigami are moving with shunpo, trying to get to the survivors fast. He looks around, and feels a wave of dread begin to wash over him. He approaches where he sees Mayuri is standing, without Nemu nearby him.

“Where is he?” He asks, knowing that he doesn’t have to say his name. There’s no point, as they all know just who he’s asking after. “Where is he??” He says, a little more urgency in his voice.

Mayuri won’t meet his eyes. “He’s hurt bad.” He gestures towards where it seems half the Quincy world is still around, fixed between where Soul Society still sits.

“INOUE!” He shouts to his friend, as he takes off running in the direction that the 12th Divison’s captain has gestured towards. “INOUE, PLEASE!!”

“I’m right behind you, Kurosaki-kun!” She shouts from far away, but he doesn’t care. He knows she’ll be there, if she says that.

Moving on instinct, he searches for his reiatsu. When he pinpoints him, he sees the two former Espada standing near him. He approaches them, but stops when Grimmjow holds out his arm to him. “Wait, Ichigo.”

“Don’t!” He tries to push past him, but the Espada is making it difficult for him to do anything. “Let me see him, Grimmjow!”

“Ichigo,” Neliel looks over at him, a sad look on her face. “I tried my best! But, it was too close, and things just started to fall apart, and-”

Finally breaking free, he stops when he sees the man who means _everything_  to him lying on the ground, looking completely broken. He chokes back the sob that wants to make its way out, as he looks at Urahara Kisuke, and sees what had become of him during his fight with the Sternritter here on the ground. Stitches upon stitches cover his body, three of which are on his face, two running vertically down his cheeks, as if they were morbid tears. His eyes are closed, someone having closed them to hide away the dullness that his grey eyes no doubt hold. The ground hurts his knees, as he collapses next to his side, his hand grabbing onto Urahara’s lifeless one.

“No….” Ichigo whispers, shaking his head. “It wasn’t meant to be like this.” Tears begin to spill from his eyes, Ichigo hating that even though he had done all he could up above, to make sure that the worlds did not disappear, it had not mattered. Yes, everyone had been saved because of his actions, except the one man that was never supposed to leave his side. “God damn it, Kisuke,” his voice cracks, as he falls into the abyss of pure anguish.

The hand he is holding gives just the tiniest hint of a squeeze. “I-If I knew….you’d be this upset… I would have done it all over again.” Urahara barely gets the words out, before he starts to cough, flecks of blood falling from his lips.

“INOUE!” He screams, clinging to Urahara’s hand. “Shhh, Kisuke, don’t say anything right now. Please.”

It seems that Neliel had gone to find her, and used flash step to get back to where they are. He moves away, resting Urahara’s hand on top of his chest, a sad smile resting on the man’s features. “S-Sorry, Kurosaki-kun.” Orihime kneels down next to Urahara, her two faeries extending the barrier over Urahara’s body.

He waits for what feels like an eternity, staying silent as he watches the faeries do their work of rejecting what had been done to him. To an extent, that is. Whatever damage that had been done to him by the Sternritter he’d fought, that had been healed, but it looked like the rest of him remains the same. The stitches covering his face are now permanent markings, as well as the ones that seem to cover the rest of his body. When Urahara begins to breathe more normally, that’s when he finally allows himself to relax, and realize that everything is going to be okay now. As okay as they can be, given the carnage that surrounds them.

“Bring him to my estate,” Byakuya makes his presence known to them. “He is more than welcome there.”

Ichigo looks up at the captain for the 6th Division, and feels an immense gratitude surround him. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, Kurosaki. If you need help moving him-”

He stands up, and looks at Grimmjow. “No, we’ve got it.”

“Tscch. I paid my debt to him already, Kurosaki.” Grimmjow glares at him, but after a few minutes, bends down to pick him him by the shoulders, while Ichigo picks up his feet.

“Then, do it for me,” he looks at his former enemy, now friend, giving him a grateful smile. “Inoue - I-”

She shakes her head. “It’s okay, Kurosaki-kun. I’m going to go and see if there are others that we can help.”

“Please, do. I’ll find you guys later.” He looks at Grimmjow, and gives him a nod, the two of them heading to Byakuya’s estate, which is less than a kilometer from where they are.

It’s quiet on the Kuchiki family estate. It almost feels _normal_ , which Ichigo isn’t sure is a good thing, or a bad thing. Like the last twenty four hours, the world had not gone to complete shit. Or was it forty-eight? He is so beyond exhausted, that time means nothing to him at the moment. All he cares about is Urahara, and wanting to make sure that he’s perfectly okay. They set him down in one of Byakuya’s spare rooms, Grimmjow leaving him alone with him. All he can do now is wait to see those beautiful grey eyes of his.

Night falls, the sounds of nocturnal animals making their presence known, as Ichigo continues to keep vigil. He can feel the effects of the day beginning to catch up to him, the need to sleep becoming something he can no longer push aside. But he refuses. Not until Urahara wakes up, and shows him that everything will be alright, even if it doesn’t feel that way at the moment. His chin rests against his chest, eyes beginning to droop more when he feels pressure on his hand. Blinking a few times, he looks down, and sees Urahara’s stitched fingers beginning to squeeze, making whatever tiredness he’s felt disappear almost completely.

Urahara coughs slightly, turning his head to the side. “Water…?”

“Right here.” Ichigo reaches for the glass that’s next to a pitcher of water. “Can you sit up?”

His lover shakes his head, as Ichigo holds the glass to his lips. He waits for him to have his fill, before pulling the glass away, and sets it back down in its spot. “I take it that you were successful…?”

“More so than you,” Ichigo chokes out a sound that sounds like both a sob and a laugh. “What the hell happened to you, Kisuke??”

A deep breath is pulled from Urahara’s lungs, as his eyes fall closed. “It is over, isn’t it, Ichigo?”

“It is. All is well in the world.”

“That’s good.” Urahara takes another deep breath. “I’m afraid that these might be permanent features on my body. I ran into a slight problem.”

Another choked out sob laugh tears from Ichigo’s throat. He wipes his eyes, refusing to allow more tears to spill at this moment. “You look like shit, old man. What the fuck happened?”

“Old man,” Urahara pulls Ichigo towards him, forcing him to lay next to him on the tatami mat. “Why must you hurt my heart in such a manner?”

“Because if I tell you how I’m really feeling, I probably won’t stop being upset,” Ichigo replies, his forehead coming to rest against Urahara’s. He can feel the raised skin of the fresh scars against his own, tears threatening to fall again as he relearns what it feels like having Urahara’s body touching his.

Urahara’s breath tickles his lips. “I did what was necessary. I did not think that Neliel would make it in time, but it appears that she had, and that Benihime had continued her actions until it was all over.”

“Benihime??” Ichigo sits up, and looks down at his lover’s face. “What does your zanpakuto have anything to do with this?”

“She’s responsible for my new look,” his lover says with soft laughter in his voice.

He feels his stomach drop. “No. That can’t be true.”

“Ichigo,” Urahara touches his face, the stitches visible on his hand as Urahara strokes his cheek. “There is a reason why I don’t reveal my bankai.”

The cane that conceals the man’s zanpakuto rests near the door, his own Zangetsu resting nearby. “What’s her power?”

“She restructures things that need restructuring,” his lover closes his eyes. His hand moves away from his face, and instead touches his upper arm. “Or rather, anything in her path.”

“But your eyes…?” Ichigo’s finger brushes some of the pale blonde fringe that rests on Urahara’s forehead. “I don’t understand why she would do something like this to your face…Is that dried blood…?”

It had been the first thing he had noticed, besides the fresh scars that traveled down both of his cheeks. He had thought it must be someone else’s, or something of that nature, but now hearing of the power that Urahara’s zanpakuto holds in its bankai state, it doesn’t sit very well with him. He looks into his lover’s eyes, and sees that he will not look at him, but his hand grasps his tightly.

“The Sternritter Yoruichi fought had been strong. So strong, that she lost her life. Well, almost. If I hadn’t shown up when I did, she would not be here.” Urahara’s fingers grip his hand tighter, as he goes through his memories. “His ability….” Ichigo holds his breath, fearing the worst. “His ability stole my eyesight from me. So, yes. That is blood on my face.”

“But how?” He asks, grey eyes finally looking into his own. “How are you able to see?”

The hand that is holding his pulls it up towards Urahara’s face. He guides Ichigo’s fingers to touch the stitched markings on his face. “I told you, her power is the restructure anything in her path. She gave me my eyesight back, knowing that it was a necessary means.”

“You’ll have these scars forever….” Ichigo whispers, his eyes beginning to well with more unshed tears. “But you can see?”

Urahara nods his head, placing Ichigo’s fingers against his lips. A soft kiss on his fingertips has him closing his eyes. “As I said, it was a necessary evil. We succeeded, as did you. So, I believe that this is a call for a celebration, don’t you?” 

“You can’t even move,” Ichigo shakes his head. “What am I going to do with you, Kisuke?”

“Love me until you grow tired of me?”

He rests his forehead against his, no longer finding the scars all that strange. The raised skin feels like it has always been there, even though Ichigo knows that that isn’t the case. “Of course I will love you, Kisuke, but it won’t be me growing tired of you. It will be the other way around.”

“Just because I almost died doesn’t mean you can hurt my feelings in such a manner, Ichigo,” Urahara rubs his nose against Ichigo’s. “And just because I almost died, it doesn’t mean that my desire to kiss and touch you has gone away, so why don’t you cut the nice act, and give us both what we really want?”

Groaning, he shakes his head, but plants a soft kiss onto Urahara’s lips. “We’re both covered in filth, and _blood_. Now is not the time to be discussing these things. We can do that tomorrow, Kisuke.”

“We could go find a bathroom. I’m sure there’s plenty of them on the Kuchiki estate.” Urahara teases him, the words making Ichigo feel better. His lover his back to his wily ways.

Ichigo places another soft kiss on his lips. “Enough of that talk, old man. Tonight, let’s rest. I’d say that we’ve earned a good night’s rest, don’t you?”

“I do, Ichigo. But come morning….?”

Closing his eyes, he lays his head down on Urahara’s shoulder, hoping that it doesn’t hurt him too much. “In the morning, you may have your way with me. And vice versa. But right now?”

“Sleep.”

He nods his head. “Sleep.”

***

Ichigo gets all of thirty minutes before he feels Urahara pulling him from his sleep, his wandering hands too much of a temptation. Sleep means so little right now, the exhaustion all but gone from his body as he feels Urahara touching him more. No, sleep can wait. Now it’s time to remember that they’re both still alive, and will be for many years to come.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt - ”I need you now.“

* * *

_Grey eyes watch the substitute shinigami’s chest rise and fall, soft snores leaving Ichigo’s mouth, eyelids twitching as the teen dreams. Urahara’s own breath is the same as his, even though he’s wide awake, unable to close his eyes for fear that when he wakes up, this will all be a dream._

_He’s just crossed the line with Ichigo, one he’s been tiptoeing for far too long. And for once, it had not been him that had pushed the boundary too far. No, that had come from the stubborn teen, who all but yelled at him to ‘shut up and kiss me’, which they both knew could not be denied by either party. He’d willingly given himself over to Ichigo, even though his mind had screamed at him to stop, his heart had pushed him forward, allowing him to feel the things he’d kept hidden inside of himself for far too long. That day, his world had been made brighter, even though the rest of the world remained in limbo, as they had no idea what was to happen with the coming winter war._

_Ichigo sighs in his sleep, a smile manifesting on his lips, as he shifts a little. Urahara smiles, watching him for a few minutes longer, before allowing his brain the comfort that when he wakes up, Ichigo will still be here, and that nothing too horrible will have changed between them._

Memories of their first time after sleeping together come to the forefront of Urahara’s mind, as he watches Ichigo sleep next to him, but this time it’s different. This time, he knows that he’s lucky to be given this second chance at life, allowing him to see the success that his lover has brought to everyone - Shinigami, humans, Hollow. They’re all safe now because of the fight he had against the head of the Quincy - Yhwach. Ichigo had been right to say that they could do things later; he could see the weariness in his lover’s eyes. However, this second lease on life is making it very difficult for him to rest, so instead, he finds himself watching his lover sleeping, his heart beating easier with every breath that Ichigo takes.

His fingers push some of the orange hair off of Ichigo’s forehead, Urahara’s eyes drawn to the scars that go over the back of his hand, and the ones that wrap around the base of each finger. Benihime can be a cruel mistress, but he knows that she did what she did in order to help him achieve what needed to be done. Guiding Ichigo to touch his face had almost broken him; he could barely register the touch of his fingers on his scars, which made him want to cry. If there is one thing that he wishes he could feel, it would be to feel his lover’s touch, but that’s neither here nor there. He’s grateful that he’s here at all. Yes, Benihime can be a very cruel mistress indeed.

Ichigo’s eyes pinch as Urahara’s finger travels down his cheek, using the back of his hand to barely touch the side of his neck. He knows he should let him sleep - both as his mentor, and as a friend, he’s quite aware of what Ichigo’s been through the last twenty-four hours. But, as his lover, he can’t seem to mute the voice inside of his head telling him to touch more of Ichigo’s body, his mind wanting to make certain that he’s not trapped in limbo somewhere, and that this is all just some awful penance for what he’s done in his past.

A soft moan leaves Ichigo’s mouth, as he turns towards him, his fingers now coming to rest at the drawstring of his hakama. “S-Sleep,” Ichigo mumbles, pressing his face against his shoulder. “Go to sleep, Kisuke…”

“I can’t,” he confesses in a soft whisper. “I need you now.”

Stubble scratches against the side of Ichigo’s face, Urahara pleased that he can still feel that - which makes sense, as his scars only go down from his eyes, towards his jaw. Parts of his jaw are still unaffected, which makes him thankful that Benihime had been precise when fixing him back up. “We need to bathe,” Ichigo reminds him, but doesn’t seem to struggle as Urahara pulls his pants down from his body.

“We can bathe afterwards,” he brushes his lips against Ichigo’s, groaning low. “Please, Ichigo.”

Tongues touch, as Ichigo pulls him close to his body, his hands going through his shoulder length hair, making him groan low. Trapping Ichigo’s lips under his, he kisses him hard, trying to pour everything he’s left unsaid into the kiss, wanting his lover to know just how close he’d been to losing him forever. His own words of apology repeat in his mind, as he feared he was dying, offering up a pathetic apology that he wouldn’t be able to see the end with his lover. But that hadn’t been the case, thanks to the ingenuity of Neliel, who’d come at the last possible moment to rescue both Grimmjow and himself. This feeling - Ichigo under him, the way his mouth responds to every little thing his own mouth does against his is all that Urahara wants, all that he needs. Fighting to make sure that it stays this way had pushed him to the brink of death, and he wasn’t about to surrender himself to the exhaustion he can feel wanting to consume him, and instead focuses his energy on his lover’s body.

It’s quick, the both of them needing to reestablish their connection they’d been so afraid had been taken away from each other. Neither complains, and instead just cling to one another, as they try to find their breath. Urahara wants to pull Ichigo closer, but can’t seem to get him to be as close to him as he wants. Kisses don’t seem to be enough, even though the two are sharing their breaths with one another, which should be as close as the two of them can get. He can feel the same desperation from his lover’s kisses, glad that the two seem to share the same realization that they had been _this close_  to losing each other.

Pulling back from the kiss, Urahara rests his forehead against Ichigo’s, panting softly. “Shall we go find a bath, Kurosaki-san?” He licks the tip of his tongue against Ichigo’s upper lip, enjoying the soft moan that leaves his lover’s mouth.

“Yeah,” Ichigo nods. “There’s one next door, if I remember correctly.”

“Just how many times have you been to Kuchiki’s estate?” Urahara teases him, finally feeling normal.

His lover groans, pushing away from him. “You just can’t let it go, can you, Kisuke?” He hears the annoyance in his lover’s voice, but the smile on his face betrays what his true emotion is. Pulling away from Urahara’s body, Ichigo stands up from the tatami mat, and grabs onto his own, helping him to stand up. “This way, old man.”

He finds it difficult to walk, and finds himself leaning against his lover’s body, Ichigo’s arm coming to rest around his middle, helping him walk towards the bathroom. “I’m sorry.” His head hangs low.

“Don’t be.” He can hear how his lover seems to choke back on what sounds like a sob. “I’ve got you, Kisuke. I’m never going to let you go.”

“I know, Ichigo.” Resting his head against his lover’s shoulder, the two make their way into the spacious bathroom.

Sitting down on the edge of the tub, Urahara watches Ichigo turn the water on, admiring the lines of his body as he bends over, his libido coming back quick, even if the rest of his body is still under a state of duress. Ichigo turns to look at him, then shakes his head, a smirk on his face. “What?” Urahara asks, but knows just what it is his lover is shaking his head at.

“You would think after almost losing your balance,” Ichigo’s hand touches his slowly growing erection, “that this would know that now isn’t the time.”

Urahara moans low, giving a small flex of his cock against his lover’s fingers. “It seems that it would have a mind of its own.”

“Tell it to go to sleep.” Ichigo helps him stand up, then guides him to sit down in the large bath.

Smiling, he shakes his head. “Never, Kurosaki-san.”

Ichigo sits facing him in the tub, turning off the water when it’s almost spilling over the sides of the basin. “Alright, let’s get this blood off of you, shall we?”

“And I shall do the same for you,” Urahara nods his head.

The cloth that touches his chest makes him close his eyes, his head falling forward as his lover touches him in the most intimate way. When his fingers slide across one of his scars, it feels numb, but it isn’t such a bad sensation. Now that he knows what to expect, unlike what it had felt like when Ichigo had touched his face, it made the experience that much more gratifying. Auburn eyes look into his, as Ichigo dips the cloth below the surface of the water, a determined look on his face.

“Should I stop, Kisuke?” Ichigo asks, as the cloth starts to touch his sensitive arousal.

His head hangs forward, as a low moan is pulled from his throat. “I-If that is what you wish, Ichigo.”

“What I wish is for this,” he touches Urahara’s cock with his hand, “to be back inside of me. Bathing be damned.”

“Do it.”

Water spills over the lip of the tub, as Ichigo moves to straddle his lap. Arms push down on his shoulders, as Ichigo slides down onto his cock, Urahara moaning low at the unique sensation. Bath play can be fun, but this seems to carry a weight that neither wish to speak of. The water is murky with the dried blood from both of their bodies, but neither care, as they find solace in their passion for one another. Urahara’s hands grab onto Ichigo’s hips, as he thrusts his hips up, sheathing himself fully into the tight heat of his lover’s body.

Moans tickle his ear, as Ichigo begins to rock himself on his cock. “K-Kisuke,” Ichigo half-moans, half-whispers. “Kisuke, touch me…”

“Ichigo…” He moans low, his hand gripping onto his lover’s cock, stroking it with each thrust of his hips.

“Nnngh…” His lover’s tongue rubs against his ear. “J-Just like that, Kisuke…. Just like that…” Ichigo moans into his ear.

Biting his lower lip, he groans low, stroking Ichigo faster, as he watches him writhe on his cock. He kisses him hard, the two of them moaning loud into each other’s mouths, as their copulation becomes uncontrollable. Urahara holds onto his orgasm, which is fast approaching, not wanting to come until he makes his lover climax again. He doesn’t have to wait too long, as Ichigo pulls away from their kiss, and buries his face against his neck, a loud moan tearing from his throat, as he feels the warmth of his release beginning to coat his hand. With one rough thrust upwards, Urahara finds his release, his orgasm making every nerve in his body come to life, eliciting a loud moan to be pulled from his throat.

Arms wrap around his neck, as Ichigo kisses him senseless, Urahara’s softening cock slipping out of him at the sudden shift of his lover’s body. He pulls him close, returning the passionate kiss, both groaning softly each time their tongues caress one another. Breaking off the kiss, he holds his lover close to him. “What do you say we go back and lay down?”

“Mmm. Okay,” Ichigo nods his head.

After one more quick rinse, the two get out of the bath, and make their way back into the bedroom. Urahara starts to move to lay back down, but Ichigo stops him. “What is it?” He asks, turning towards his lover.

“So many new scars,” Ichigo whispers. His fingers ghost over the stitches, Urahara’s eyes dropping to watch, as he can only feel a dull ache where Ichigo’s fingers touch.

Reaching forward, he touches a few scars on his lover’s chest that hadn’t been there before this final fight for survival. “Likewise, Kurosaki.”

“But we’re still the same, aren’t we, Kisuke?” His lover asks, auburn eyes filled with unshed tears. “Nothing has changed between the two of us, right?”

He cups his lover’s cheeks, staring straight into his eyes. “I love you, with all of my soul, Ichigo. Nothing can ever change that. Yes, our bodies are different now, but what is in here,” he takes Ichigo’s hand and places it against his heart, “this is still the same as it was before we said goodbye, and I sent you off to the Soul King’s palace.”

“Promise?”

Here is the seventeen year old, scared and afraid that what’s happened to the two of them has forever changed them. Urahara doesn’t break their eye contact, as he nods his head. “I promise, Ichigo. My love for you is the same as it ever was.”

“I love you too.” A smile starts to appear on his lover’s face, any worry that might have begun to plague Urahara disappearing with that reassuring smile.

He pulls Ichigo to lay down with him, pulling him to rest against his chest. He hears him begin to snore five minutes later, his own eyes falling closed as their chests rise and fall in the same rhythm. It’s going to be a long road to recovery, both for Seireitei and the two individuals laying in one another’s arms, but Urahara is confident that both will come out stronger because of what they’ve been through. Damage had been done, and battles had been fought, but both are still here to live to tell their tale. Urahara has no plans of ever letting Ichigo go, knowing that that small fear has to be inside of Ichigo’s head, just as it’s in his. His arms wrap around him tighter, as the both of them snore in unison, clinging to one another. The war is finally over, allowing the two of them to find their own respective peace.  


End file.
